Folding ski

ABSTRACT

A folding ski consists of first and second front and rear ski members held in associated relation to each other by a spring loaded cable. Abutting end portions of each of these ski members are provided with embedded matching, mating first and second end plates. Each of these plates has a horizontal portion embedded in its ski member and a face portion extending across the end of its ski member in non-perpendicular relation to its horizontal portion to be in abutting supportive relation to the face portion of the other end plate when the ski is in assembled condition. A pair of support bars are permanently mounted in the first ski member and extend longitudinally of the ski outwardly through its associated first end plate to extend through provided support slots in the second end plate and into a clearance cavity in the second ski member when the ski is assembled. Integral hooks on outer ends of these bars then will each engage a main support pin which is permanently supported on and in the second ski member in transverse relationship to that member. A channel member is permanently fixed to the second ski member and extends longitudinally outwardly of the second member to be in surrounding relation to the first ski member when the ski is in assembled condition. Readily releasable fastening means hold the channel in contact with the first ski member to maintain the ski in assembled relation.

United States Patent Meland 1 Sept. 5, 1972 [541 FOLDING SKI [72] Inventor: John M. Meland, 7108 Riverdale Road, Brooklyn Center, Minn. 55430 22 Filed: Dec. 11,1970

21 Appl.No.: 97,090

[52] US. Cl. ..280/1l.13 K [51] Int. Cl ..A63c 5/02 [58] Field of Search ..280/11.13 K, 11.13 R

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,791,435 5/1957 Meland ..280/1 1.13 K 2,678,829 5/ 1954 Meland ..280/1 1.13 K 1,875,512 9/1932 Silvestri ..280/11.13 K

FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 588,632 11/1933 Germany ..280/l 1.13 K 15,818 12/1906 Norway ..280/11.13 K

Primary Examiner-Benjamin Hersh Assistant Examiner-Milton L. Smith Attorney-Burd, Braddock & Bartz [57] ABSTRACT A folding ski consists of first and second front and rear ski members held in associated relation to each other by a spring loaded cable. Abutting end portions of each of these ski members are provided with embedded matching, mating first and second end plates. Each of these plates has a horizontal portion embedded in its ski member and a face portion extending across the end of its ski member in non-perpendicular relation to its horizontal portion to be in abutting supportive relation to the face portion of the other end plate when the ski is in assembled condition. A pair of support bars are permanently mounted in the first ski member and extend longitudinally of the ski outwardly through its associated first end plate to extend through provided support slots in the second end plate and into a clearance cavity in the second ski member when the ski is assembled. Integral hooks on outer ends of these bars then will each engage a main support pin which is permanently supported on and in the second ski member in transverse relationship to that member. A channel member is permanently fixed to the second ski member and extends longitudinally outwardly of the second member to be in surrounding relation to the first ski member when the ski is in assembled condition. Readily releasable fastening means hold the channel in contact with the first ski member to maintain the ski in assembled relation.

2Claims,6DrawingIh'gures A /0 /4 '11 I l llllllllll Y m .1 f /2 Pabntod Sept. 5, 1912 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN VENTOR.

JOHN M MEZAIVD FOLDING SKI BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention has relation to snow skis consisting of front and rear ski members which may be transported and stored when in folded parallel contacting relationship with each other and which may be readily fastened together in end to end relationship to constitute a ski for downhill and cross-country use.

Skis of this general description are known. For example, see U.S. Pat. No. 2,678,829 and U.S. Pat. No. 2,791,435, issued to applicant. A difficulty with the structures of the prior art, as typified by the two patents listed above, for example, has been the use of an articulated hinge structure. See, for example, links 22 in U.S. Pat. No. 2,678,829 and binge members 41 in U.S. Pat. No. 2,791,435. Such structures permanently linked the front and rear members of the ski together, and are, therefore, constantly subjected to wearwhether the ski is in folded or aligned condition and to accidental twisting moments when in folded condition. This structure tended to result in at least some discernable movement at the joint when the ski was in aligned working condition. This slight movement was noticeable to users of the ski and tended to destroy their confidence as to the rigidity and safety of the structures involved. As a consequence, public acceptance of such skis had been rather slow to the date of the present invention.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A folding ski made mostly of wood or other suitable material, and made according to the present invention includes at least two bars which are fixedly mounted in the firstof front and rear ski members. Hooks are provided on the ends of these bars to be positioned snugly and fixedly over a transverse pin fixedly mounted in a second of said ski members and within a cavity provided in the second member for that purpose when the two ski members are aligned for use. Embedded matching and mating first and second end plates are permanently mounted on ends of the first and second members to be in contacting supportive relationship to each other when the books of the first ski member are supported in the second on the support pin. Support slots are provided in the second end plate to receive these bars and to support bottom portions thereof to assist the support pin in supporting the hooks on the bars.

A channel member is fixedly fastened to the top surface of one of the ski members with its sides embedded flush into the sides of that ski member. The channel member extends longitudinally therefrom to be in surrounding relation to the other ski member and to fit into recesses provided in the vertical sides thereof when the ski is in assembled condition. In this condition, the channel member bears against the top surface of said other member and acts as a reaction member to prevent upward movement of the ski members with respect to each other. Similarly, the hooks and bars bear on the support pin and the end plate slots to prevent such upward movement.

A spring loaded cable is anchored against the back of one of the end plates and extends outwardly through that end plate, longitudinally of the ski, through the opposite end plate to be anchored with respect to the opposite ski member.

When the skis are in the folded condition, this cable keeps the skis in associated relationship to each other, and when the skis are moved from folded toward aligned and fastened relationship, the tension on this cable tends to lead the parts together to the end that the hooks easily come into alignment with the support pin and the other mating parts become aligned.

A readily attachable and releasable fastening means at the outer end of the channel member is provided for holding and locking that channel member in contact with the opposite ski member to maintain the ski in aligned, fastened and assembled relationship for use over the snow.

IN THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a top plan view of a ski made according to the present invention when fastened in' assembled, aligned relation ready for use over the snow;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged side elevational view of the ski of FIG. 1 showing that ski in the folded condition;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary side elevational view taken on the line 3--3 of FIG. 1, with parts in section and parts omitted and broken away;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary, sectional top plan view taken on the line 4-4 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary, perspective view of the ski of the present invention with its front and rear ski members shown in an intermediate position between the folded and the aligned conditions; and

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary, perspective view of a portion of the ski of the invention showing that ski in the assembled, aligned and fastened condition.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT A ski 10 includes elongated front and rear ski members 12 and 14 respectively. A ski binding 16, useful to attach a skiers boot to the ski is shown in FIG. 1 for the sake of completeness, but forms no part of the present invention. The ski binding illustrated will be particularly useful to a cross-country skier but skis of the invention can be for either downhill or cross-country use.

Front ski member 12 is provided with an end plate 28 and rear ski member 14 is provided with an end plate 30. A horizontal portion 31 of front base plate 28 is embedded in the upper surface of the front ski member 12 and a face portion 33 is integral with and extends away from the horizontal portion 31 at an obtuse angle with respect thereto.

A horizontal portion 35 of the rear end plate 30 is embedded in the upper surface of the rear ski member 14 and a face portion 37 is integral with and extends away from the horizontal portion 35 at an acute angle with respect thereto.

These end plates 28 and 30 are permanently fastened, each to its own ski member, by screws extending into the ski members, as shown. When the ski members are aligned for use, the face portion 30 of the rear end plate 30 is in intimate contact with, and in position to be supported by, the face portion 33 of front end plate 28.

Permanently mounted in the body of front ski member 12 are a pair of metallic main support bars 18,18. Screws or pins 20, 20 extend through these bars 18, and extend through the wooden portion of the ski in transverse relationship thereto to permanently anchor the bars with respect to the front ski member 12. Each bar terminates in a hook portion 21 at an outer end thereof.

As shown, the main support bars, 18,18 extend outwardly in fixed relation to and through the front end plate 28. A pair of bar support slots 32,32 are provided in the face portion 37 of rear end plate in position to receive the support bars 18,18, and a clearance cavity 41 is provided as a hollowed out portion of the rear ski member 14. A main support pin 22 extends transversely through the entire rear ski member 14 and through the clearance cavity 41 in position to be in mating alignment with the slots of the hook portions 21,21 of the main support bars 18,18.

A channel member 24 consists of a horizontal wall 25 and a pair of vertical side walls 27,27, embedded to be flush with the vertical side walls of the rear ski member 14. This channel member is permanently anchored to the rear ski member by screws 26,26, and by the outer rivoted ends of the main support pin 22. The channel member extends forwardly from the rear ski member to position where its horizontal wall 25 will be in parallel relationship to the top surface of the front ski member 12 and its vertical walls 27,27 will be in contacting relationship with said front ski member in provided recesses in the vertical sides thereof when the ski is in assembled condition. A lip 42 is provided at the front edge of horizontal wall 25 to be in contacting relationship to the upper surface of the front ski member when the ski is in aligned position for use in skiing.

It is to be noted that the upper outer edges of the main support bars 18,18 are rounded and that the ends of the slots provided by the hook portions 21,21 of those bars are of configurations such that when the front and rear ski members are moved into mating relationship, the hooks slide easily through the support slots 32,32 in the face portion 37 of the rear end plate 30. The final positioning of the parts when the skis are in aligned condition for use is perhaps best seen in FIGS. 3 6. It is to be noted that the shape of the slots provided by book portions 21,21 is such that the main support pin 22 fits exactly snugly therein and that the bottoms of the bar support slots 32,32 (see FIG. 3) are in contacting, bearing relationship to the bottom edges of the bars 18,18 when the main support pin 22 is in bearing relationship to the hook portions of that bar. At this point, the lip 42 is in bearing relationship to the top surface of the front ski member 12, and the now assembled ski is in the position to support the weight of a skier having his foot in the ski binding 16. The main support bars 18,18 are fixedly and rigidly mounted in the front ski member 12, as set out above, and the force down on this front ski member tending to cause the ski members to pivot upwardly toward each other is resisted by the main support pin 22 in the hook portion 21 and by the bottom of the bar support slots 32,32 in contact with the lower edge portion of the main support bars 18,18. The channel member 24 is fixedly supported on the rear ski member 14, as set out above, and downward force on this rear ski member tending to cause such pivotal movement is resisted by the channel and specifically by the lip 42 thereof reacting against the upper surface of the front ski member 12.

The parts are maintained in this relationship to each other by a fastening means 29 which includes a bolt 34 rotatably mounted in the horizontal wall 25 at the outer end of channel member 24. This bolt is threaded for engagement with a strap 36 having a threaded hole 38. This strap is mounted on the top surface of the front ski member 12 by screws as best seen in FIGS. 3 and 4. When it is desired that the ski be maintained in its fastened, aligned and usable condition, the bolt 34 is rotated to cause the channel member and specifically the lip 42 to be held down against the upper surface of the front ski member 12, as best seen in FIG. 3 and in FIG. 6. When it is desired that the ski be folded, the bolt 34 is rotated in opposite direction to release the channel and to allow the ski to be folded through the position as seen in FIG. 5, for example, to the fold position of FIG. 2.

In order to keep the ski members in assembled relationship when the skis are folded to this position, and in order to assist in the alignment of parts when it is desired to once again assemble the skis as seen in FIGS. 1, 3, 4 and 6, a resilient cable assembly 43 is provided.

' This includes a cable 44 anchored in front ski member 12 behind and extending through the face portion 33 of the end plate 28 and through end plate 30 into the rear ski member 14 and clearance cavity 41 where a compression spring 46 is anchored to the end thereof by washer 48. The spring presses against the inner surface of the face portion 37 of the end plate 30, to provide tension on the cable to cause the front ski member to be drawn toward the rear ski member thus to provide at least some of the force to help guide and draw the two ski members together during the assembly thereof. When the ski is in folded condition as in FIG. 2, some kind of fastening need only be provided around both ski members near the outer ends thereof as the ends encompassed in the end plates are kept in close relation to each other by cable assembly 43.

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:

1. A folding ski for repeatable operation from an as sembled condition to a folded condition, said ski including:

a first elongated ski member having a top surface, side surfaces, a bottom skiing surface, and an end portion; a second elongated ski member having a top surface, side surfaces, a bottom skiing surface, and an end portion adapted to be fastened in abutting alignment with said first ski member end portion; connecting means including:

at least two elongated main support bars permanently mounted on and extending outwardly from said end portion of said first ski member in longitudinal alignment with said first ski member, said bars each being provided at an outer end thereof with a hook having a slot facing open toward the bottom of said ski member, and,

at least one support pin mounted in a clearance cavity provided in the end portion of said second ski member, said support pin being in position to be in supporting alignment with at least one of said hooks in said slot when said ski is in an assembled condition;

a channel member permanently secured to said second ski member and including:

a horizontal wall and depending vertical side walls, a first end portion of said horizontal wall being fixedly positioned with respect to the upper surface of said end portion of said second ski member and first end portions of said vertical walls lying adjacent to, and in contacting relation with, said side surfaces of said end portion of said second ski member,

a second end portion of said horizontal wall and second end portions of said vertical side walls extending longitudinally beyond the end portion of said second ski member in parallel relation thereto and in position to removably receive said first ski member end portion when said first and second ski members are aligned and ski is in assembled condition, and

at least a portion of said horizontal wall of said channel member being in stress bearing relation to said top surface of the end portion of said first elongated ski member at position spaced from the end thereof;

a releasable fastening means on said ski for positioning said second end portion of said channel member in fixed contacting relation to said top surface of said first ski member;

a first end plate encompassing said end portion of the first ski member;

a second end plate encompassing said end portion of the second ski member;

said end plates each including:

a horizontal portion embedded in its ski member,

and

a face portion extending across the end of its ski member in non-perpendicular relation to its horizontal portion, each face portion positioned to be in abutting supportive relation to the other face portion when the ski is in assembled condition;

said face portion of said first end plate extending away from its horizontal portion at an obtuse ansaid face portion of said second end plate extending away from its horizontal portion at a supplementary acute angle; and

a resilient cable assembly including:

a cable anchored in one of said first and second end portions and extending longitudinally outwardly from the face portion of the face plate mounted thereon, said cable being slidably mounted through an aligned portion of the other face plate, and

resilient means anchored with respect to the other of said first and second end portions and fastened to said cable to allow said ski portions to be moved against the action of said resilient means to folded position where said bottom skiing surfaces are in contact with each other, and to apply tension to said cable to urge said end portions toward each other as said ski is moved from folded toward and into assembled condition.

2. The combination as specified in claim 1, wherein said first ski member is a front ski member and said sec md ski member is a rear ski member; and wherein sai means is anchored with respect to the rear ski member. 

1. A folding ski for repeatable operation from an assembled condition to a folded condition, said ski including: a first elongated ski member having a top surface, side surfaces, a bottom skiing surface, and an end portion; a second elongated ski member having a top surface, side surfaces, a bottom skiing surface, and an end portion adapted to be fastened in abutting alignment with said first ski member end portion; connecting means including: at least two elongated main support bars permanently mounted on and extending outwardly from said end portion of said first ski member in longitudinal alignment with said first ski member, said bars each being provided at an outer end thereof with a hook having a slot facing open toward the bottom of said ski member, and, at least one support pin mounted in a clearance cavity provided in the end portion of said second ski member, said support pin being in position to be in supporting alignment with at least one of said hooks in said slot when said ski is in an assembled condition; a channel member permanently secured to said second ski member and including: a horizontal wall and depending vertical side walls, a first end portion of said horizontal wall being fixedly positioned with respect to the upper surface of said end portion of said second ski member and first end portions of said vertical walls lying adjacent to, and in contacting relation with, said side surfaces of said end portion of said second ski member, a second end portion of said horizontal wall and second end portions of said vertical side walls extending longitudinally beyond the end portion of said second ski member in parallel relation thereto and in position to removably receive said first ski member end portion when said first and second ski members are aligned and ski is in assembled condition, and at least a portion of said horizontal wall of said channel member being in stress bearing relation to said top surface of the end portion of said first elongated ski member at position spaced from the end thereof; a releasable fastening means on said ski for positioning said second end portion oF said channel member in fixed contacting relation to said top surface of said first ski member; a first end plate encompassing said end portion of the first ski member; a second end plate encompassing said end portion of the second ski member; said end plates each including: a horizontal portion embedded in its ski member, and a face portion extending across the end of its ski member in non-perpendicular relation to its horizontal portion, each face portion positioned to be in abutting supportive relation to the other face portion when the ski is in assembled condition; said face portion of said first end plate extending away from its horizontal portion at an obtuse angle; said face portion of said second end plate extending away from its horizontal portion at a supplementary acute angle; and a resilient cable assembly including: a cable anchored in one of said first and second end portions and extending longitudinally outwardly from the face portion of the face plate mounted thereon, said cable being slidably mounted through an aligned portion of the other face plate, and resilient means anchored with respect to the other of said first and second end portions and fastened to said cable to allow said ski portions to be moved against the action of said resilient means to folded position where said bottom skiing surfaces are in contact with each other, and to apply tension to said cable to urge said end portions toward each other as said ski is moved from folded toward and into assembled condition.
 2. The combination as specified in claim 1, wherein said first ski member is a front ski member and said second ski member is a rear ski member; and wherein said means is anchored with respect to the rear ski member. 